Untrusted
by theuniversewillfall
Summary: Steven finds that Lapis Lazuli has survived the fight with Jasper. With the gems persistent to stop the mistrustful gem, and new feelings for Connie, will Steven make the right choice? Rated T for violence and some mild language, as well as general romance.
1. Chapter 1: A New Discovery

Chapter 1: A New Discovery

"I-I can't believe it!"

Steven was walking on the beach with Connie.

"What is it, Steven?" Connie asked. Steven motioned Connie over to where he was standing. "Wow,

Steven!" Connie said. It was a Dogcopter poster, a movie/book franchise that Steven and Connie both liked.

"You should have it, Connie," Steven said. "Sure, it's a sketchy poster we found on the beach, but there isn't even any sand on it!"

Connie shook her head. "No thanks, Steven." she kindly. "You can have it. My parents don't let me have posters in my room. Besides, you were the one that found it."

"Wow, thanks Connie!" he said. He was going to pick it up, but then Connie's cell phone rang.

"Oh no, it's my parents. I was supposed to be home 5 minutes ago!" she said. "They're going to be so mad! Goodbye Steven!" Connie dashed off. Steven was about to say goodbye, but she ran off before he could even say it.

"Connie..." he said under he said under his breath. She was... such a perfect person. He knew that they had always been such great friends, but... maybe there was something more. He shook it off as a crazy idea and picked up the poster. It was a Dogcopter 3 in 3D theatrical poster. "Wow, this is so cool!" Steven exclaimed. He wondered where it came from. He picked it up. But as he was walking off, he saw a shimmering blue jewel in the sand. It must have been under the poster! Steven picked up the gem and examined it. It had a large crack on it! That's when he realized-it was Lapis Lazuli! "I have to heal her!" he whispered to himself. "Sorry Lapis, this may be a little weird..." He drooled over the crack on the gemstone. Suddenly, the crack was gone! The gemstone began to glow. It transformed into... Lapis Lazuli!

"Steven... you… saved me twice!' She hugged Steven, tears in her eyes.

"Lapis... I thought you were gone..." Steven whispered. "How did you survive?"

"When I pulled Jasper down under the ocean, we unfused. Jasper and I battled. I won, but it was a close call. Jasper died, she just couldn't fight while I had the powers of the ocean at my expense. But I took too much damage. My life force faded, and I knew I couldn't stay a cracked gem forever. I just hoped that someone, _you_ , would fix me. I-I-" She burst into tears like a child that got hurt on the playground. "I was so scared, Steven. I thought that I wouldn't survive!" She continued to sob over his shoulder.

"It's OK, Lapis… it's all over now." He broke the long, awkward hug. "Lapis, I-I just don't know what to say… I'm just so glad that you're back!"

Lapis wiped the tears from her eyes. "Steven, I-" Lapis quickly snapped into a serious disposition. "What are you going to tell the other gems? 

"I don't know. I know they don't exactly, um, well-" 

"Trust me…" Lapis continued.

"Well, yeah. But I think I can figure _something_ out… maybe." 

"Just talk to them. I'm sure they can trust me now, after I turned on Jasper like that. And if not, it's not like they can exactly _stop_ me." she said confidently, although Steven could see that she wasn't exactly sure. "After all, where else will I go?"

"Yeah, I suppose." Steven said quietly. "All we can do is hope." 

Steven now realized that Lapis was… a true friend. After everything that happened, from the mirror, to the ship, to now, he couldn't allow anything bad to happen to her. He was the only one that _truly_ understood her. And he knew that if the gems laid a _finger_ on her, he would do anything to protect her.


	2. Chapter 2: Confrontation Preparation

Thanks to all the people who reviewed, favorited, and followed my fic! Anyway, enjoy Chapter 2!

* * *

Chapter 2: Confrontation Preparation

Steven was in his room. He was thinking about the inevitability of confronting the gems about Lapis Lazuli. It would have to happen eventually, so he figured he should do it now. But right now the gems were out on a mission without him (which was rather rare at this point). He sighed. It was always boring when this happened, especially when he needed to talk to them, _like now_. He decided that he would go to the Big Donut to take his mind off of things. He walked out of the house, and went downstairs from the deck. It was mid-evening. The sun was about set. It was a beautiful day, as always in Beach City. Days like this made him think about another beautiful thing-his mother Rose Quartz. He always had, and always would miss her-even though he WAS her, in a way. He walked in the door of the Big Donut. Sadie was there, but Lars was not. He was probably in the break room.

"Oh, hi Steven!" Sadie said, straightening herself behind the counter. "What will it be this evening?"

"Just the usual, please." Steven said, rather solemnly.

"Oh, what's wrong, Steven?" Sadie asked, as she bagged his donuts.

"Nothing. I… just have a lot on my mind. You know, gem stuff." Steven responded.

"That's too bad," she said. "Here are your donuts!"

"Thanks, Sadie." he said, still solemn.

"Oh yeah, Steven! The gems came here and left me a note for you! Here you go!"

Sadie handed the note to Steven. It read:

Dear Steven,

Just as you are finished reading this note, we will be done with our mission and back at the temple. (Garnet's Future-Vision)

Since we figured you would probably go to the Big Donut (Future-Vision again), we left this note to tell you that!

See you there, Steven!

Sincerely,

Pearl

After Steven read the note, he grabbed his donuts, exited the donut shop, and headed to the temple. It was a little odd that they had written a note for him, since they had never done this before, but it was believable enough. He walked back to the temple. The sun was setting when he went up the stairs. Before walked in the door, he made some more mental preparations for the confrontation. After he was calm, he walked into the door. But when he walked in, the gems were not there. However, a figure was standing there. Steven walked forward to see who it was.

* * *

Cliffhanger for the win! Sorry this chapter was so short! Also, I will be on vacation for the next few days so I won't be able to make a new chapter, but expect a new chapter within a week!  
-theuniversewillfall


	3. Chapter 3: Surprise Visit

I'm back and ready to type! Sorry for the absence, as I mentioned last chapter, I was on vacation. Oh yeah, if you happened to read the 2nd chapter in the first 12 hours of its existence, you would have found a jumbly mess of source code. Oops. Thanks to Soleana for pointing that out! Anyway, enjoy the chapter!

* * *

Chapter 3: Surprise Visit

"Lapis?" Steven asked. It was rather obvious once he got closer. The figure had radiant blue skin, followed by the even darker shade of blue for hair. Obviously there was only one person Steven knew that fit this description.

"Oh, Steven, hi, I was just… Yeah, I have some explaining to do." Lapis responded. She quickly turned around, as Steven walked back to turn on the light. After a quick flick of the wrist, the light switched on. Sure enough, it was Lapis Lazuli.

"So… what are you doing here?" Steven asked. "I got a note saying the gems should be here… and you aren't them…"

"Well, it was pretty simple really. I went to the Big Donut before it opened, knew that you would be there, forged a note from Pearl, and sealed it temporarily to the door with water powers. Once Sadie got there, she pulled off the note and waited for you to come into the store. And then… here we are."

"Well, ok. But the real question is… why do you need to see me? You clearly put a lot of thought in this scheme."

Lapis blushed. "Well, I don't know. I thought we could maybe… hang out… or something." She began to talk quickly, as her blush deepened. "That's what friends do, right? Wait, are we friends? We are, right? I mean, if we weren't then this would be-"

"Lapis, of course we're friends! And even if we weren't, if somebody did all this, just to hang out, I think I probably would be friends with them anyway!"

Lapis looked relieved. "Oh, thank you Steven! I'm sorry for surprising you like this, I just thought… I don't know. Maybe we should spend time as friends if we are friends."

"Of course. Connie and I did spend a _lot_ of time together when we _really_ met for the first time. And now we are really good friends!" Steven responded.

"Oh yeah, I saw could really see that you and Connie got along."

A short pause entered the room.

"So… what do you want to do?" Lapis asked.

"Oh, I don't know. Want me to show you around?" Steven asked.

"Oh, I kind of did that already on my own…" Lapis muttered, blushing. "I just find this place so… fascinating. Especially, uh…" She paused. " _your room_." she finished quietly.

Awkward silence.

"Uh… ok." Steven spoke slowly, as awkwardly as the silence. "So, uh, do you want to go somewhere on the warp pad?"

"Oh yeah, sure!" she replied, rather excitedly. "Where are we going to go?"

"Well, there are a lot of different places we could go. But I think I have one in mind." Steven said.

"Wherever we go, I don't care. As long as I'm with you." she said softly.

As Steven and Lapis Lazuli stepped on the warp pad, they both realized that they both saw each other as more than just friends.

* * *

A few moments after Steven and Lapis warped off, the gems arrived back at the temple. The lights were on, but nobody was there. Steven was not there to greet them, and they doubted that he would be out this late. He didn't exactly have a curfew set, but they figured he wouldn't be gone this late.

"Steven!" Pearl called.

"Yo, Steven, where are you?" Amethyst yelled.

No response was received.

"Hmm, it is rather odd that he is gone. Maybe he is out and about around Beach City." Garnet wondered.

"Let's split up! Look around town for places that Steven normally is!" Pearl said.

And so they went. When they returned, they all found nothing-except for pearl. When they asked around there were no traces of Steven, except for Pearl, who got news from Sadie about the note left on the door. When she replied that she didn't leave the note, Sadie simply shrugged it off as odd, and Pearl left.

"This is… very bad. Steven has been abducted!"

* * *

Oh snap! Guess Lapis didn't plan that! Where did Steven go with Lapis? Will the gems find Steven? Find out next chapter! -theuniversewillfall


	4. Chapter 4: A Short Vacation

So I'm back! After an unexpected bout of a condition I like to call laziness, I'm finally writing again! Also a big thank you to all the reviewers, followers, and favoriters. Anyway, enjoy the chapter!

* * *

Chapter 4: A Short Vacation

The warp pad glowed to life as Steven and Lapis Lazuli appeared. Steven warped to the beach that Sadie, Lars, and he were "stuck" at. It was a very tropical area, with palm trees everywhere. The ocean was shimmering with the reflection of stars, since the sun had just set.

"So… here we are… I guess." said Steven, lightly blushing.

"Wow… it's so beautiful. Thank you, Steven!" Lapis exclaimed, a warm smile on her face. She ran off to the water, Steven following close behind. She jumped in, splashing Steven. Steven also jumped in. Even if he had all his clothing on, he figured Lapis could take care of it. They playfully splashed at each other. Lapis then formed a bucket of water (using water) and dumped it on Steven. He got drenched, if he wasn't already with the splashing. Regardless, Steven laughed, Lapis giggling. They walked out of the water.

"That was a blast!" Steven said excitedly.

"You bet!" Lapis said.

Lapis took the water out of Steven's clothes and dumped it in the ocean. It reminded Steven of a waterbender from Avatar: The Last Airbender, one of his favorite cartoons.

"Thanks." Steven said quietly, staring into Lapis Lazuli's eyes.

"No problem. Anything for you." she said, staring back.

They both stared into each other's eyes for a moment. Normally it would have been awkward, but it wasn't. It just felt… right. They both blushed, but didn't break the stare.

"Lapis… I-I think I love you…" Steven said happily.

"I think I love you too, Steven!" Lapis replied.

"Lapis!" Steven exclaimed, running toward her.

They ran toward each other, even if they weren't that far away. They hugged as if they were the only ones in the world at that moment. But this was different from the hug when they first met again on the beach. This hug can only be described as a hug of love. However, Steven isn't exactly smooth when it comes to the ladies. The impact from the hug had knocked Lapis over, Steven hanging on to her. They both toppled over, Steven on top of her.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" Steven said, trying not to blush, although completely failing.

Lapis just giggled. "Steven, I'm fine!" she said, continuing to giggle. Lapis flipped Steven off of her, still hanging on. They just kind of… rolled, in a giggling mess on the beach. Eventually they both got up.

"Lapis, I love you." Steven said comfortingly.

"I know. I love you too." Lapis Lazuli said, leaning on his shoulder.

They walked towards the warp pad. With a quick hand motion, they teleported off.

* * *

When they got there, Lapis Lazuli realized there was something she forgot to account for- the return of the Crystal Gems. Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl were standing in a circle, obviously panicked about the whereabouts of Steven. They all turned toward Lapis and Steven.

"Steven! Where were you? Why is she with you?" Pearl asked quickly, running over to hug Steven, comfort him.

"She must have abducted him!" Amethyst yelled.

Before Steven had a chance to explain the situation, Amethyst took out her whip and with a single motion, tied it around Lapis Lazuli.

"Lapis!" Steven exclaimed.

"I can't believe she did this to you!" Pearl accused.

* * *

Holy balls! Cliffhanger! Yeah, I'm terrible at writing fluff... XD Anyway, sorry for the wait, again! See you next chapter!

-theuniversewillfall


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